No energy to waste.
Our purpose is to accelerate the availability of clean energy and help solve the climate crisis. We believe our molten salt reactor is a stable and clean contributor to an energy system where wind and solar are the other important sources.
Our history.
In 2018, Thorizon was spun off from NRG, the national nuclear research institute of the Netherlands, where our technology was developed under the radar for years. Since then, Thorizon has rapidly developed into an ambitious deep-tech company with extensive experience in the nuclear sector and the drive to contribute to the energy transition as fast as possible. In 2023, Thorizon opened its office in Lyon to be part of the strong nuclear technology community in France.
Our team.
We are a company of experienced nuclear professionals, working together closely across our two offices in Amsterdam and Lyon. Our technical team includes experts in the fields of (systems) engineering, neutronics, chemistry, thermal hydraulics and safety. Our business-oriented team members ensure commercialization of our technology.
Sander de Groot
MSc. Mechanical Engineering 1997, has been working for more than 22 years at NRG, the Dutch nuclear research institute, operator of the High Flux Reactor Petten and worldwide leading supplier of medical isotopes. Sander has a background in computational engineering, design and management of nuclear fuel and material irradiations (specifically High Temperature Reactor), post-irradiation examination, business development, and medical isotope development.
‘Thorizon is a great opportunity to achieve something that is as challenging as it is essential: creating a responsible energy source the world desperately requires. I feel both honoured and obligated to contribute my background and experience to establish Thorizon’s success.’
Lucas Pool
10 years ago Lucas was preparing to work in the renewable energy field motivated by a strong desire to contribute to the energy transition. During his sustainable energy & entrepreneurship studies (2015, c.l.) it became clear to him that the challenge is so enormous that it is uncertain whether we will make it with renewable energy alone. The logical (but uncomfortable) conclusion was that nuclear power should probably form a part of our future energy-mix, which took some time to admit due to his not very pro-nuclear upbringing.
After having become thoroughly convinced of the merits of Molten Salt Reactor technology Lucas worked as a research consultant for the Nuclear Research & Consultancy Group (NRG) in the Netherlands for 5 years. During this time, a specific approach to building an MSR was conceived which proved to work so well that Thorizon was founded to further develop the concept. At Thorizon, Lucas is responsible for its Business Development activities.
‘I am passionate about contributing to solving energy challenges. I believe MSR technology is an essential part of the solution, and Thorizon has what it takes.’
Kiki Lauwers
Kiki is a dynamic and results-oriented business leader with a strong engineering background and 15 years of international technology management experience. Prior to joining Thorizon, Kiki held leadership roles in technology-driven scale-ups, including Chief Product Officer for an IT/telecom company where she led an international transformation, and Country Manager for a retail technology company where she successfully navigated the e-commerce product development department through rapid growth. Kiki’s career began as a strategy consultant at McKinsey & Company, specializing in advanced industries and working with over 20 companies across Europe for 6 years.
‘We urgently need new nuclear power technology to mitigate our carbon footprint. I firmly believe the Thorizon technology and team hold the key to making a fundamental impact for future generations. This is the most exciting and meaningful field of work to be part of today.’
Tsolak Malakyan
Tsolak has been working in the field of nuclear engineering for over 23 years. He has a PhD in nuclear engineering. He has experience in computational thermo-hydraulic, nuclear safety analysis, risk assessment, equipment qualification, radiological safety assessment, hydraulic system design. At Thorizon, he is involved in analyzes and modeling of thermo- hydraulic processes and Thorizon system design, as well as issues related to nuclear safety justification.
‘The Thorizon technology is one of the promising areas of nuclear power engineering, which will make it possible to achieve a closed fuel cycle with spent fuel reprocessing. I am proud to be a part of this evaluation and to contribute to the development of Thorizon.’
Jaén Ocádiz
Jaén is a physical chemist and chemical engineer whose imagination was captured many years ago by Molten Salt Reactors (MSRs). As a research scientist at TU Delft he acquired a broad experience in thermodynamic and thermopysical properties modelling of several salt systems relevant for MSR technology. At Thorizon he works on fuel and structural materials chemistry.
‘Even within a class of reactors which is robust and versatile, Thorizon’s design is in a class by itself. Bringing it to fruition will be a game-changer in the energy landscape.’
Damien Becat Mateu
After finishing a MSc in nuclear energy engineering at KTH (Sweden) and Phelma (France), Damien has worked for 5 years in the French nuclear industry in neutronics and core physics for pressurized water reactors. He has experience developing numerical schemes for neutronics and working in a multi-physics environment. At Thorizon, Damien will continue to analyse and model neutronics but this time to design a molten salt reactor.
‘What attracted me to Thorizon is their unique idea to use “closed fuel assemblies”. While retaining all the good aspects of molten salt technologies, I believe this idea has a real potential for industrialization and so to come to fruition in the near future.’
Christos Mountzouris
Christos is a nuclear engineer, who completed the European Master In Nuclear Energy double degree programme, hosted in Stockholm and Paris, before joining the dynamic team of Thorizon. The main field of interest is nuclear reactor core modeling and design. His role includes core physics calculations and the development of of Thorizon’s Molten Salt reactor multiphysics models to simulate core behaviour, safety and performance, as a basis safety case and licensing .
‘Once again, an energy crisis turns the spotlight to nuclear industry and calls for innovative, safe and reliable solutions. Thorizon is at the frontier and as a young engineer, it can’t get any better than that.’
Klara Chmiel
Klara developed a keen interest in nuclear science during her BSc in Experimental Physics at University College Dublin. Further, she completed a MSc in Applied Physics at TU Delft, where she specialized in medical and radiation physics and radiation safety. After her studies she joined Thorizon as a Junior Core Physics Engineer, where she works on developing software for reactor modelling and simulations.
‘I am very excited to witness and contribute to the advancement of the nuclear technology field. Thorizon’s design comes with the potential of reshaping the image of the Dutch energy sector and creating a lasting impact in the international nuclear energy arena.’
Wijnand Schoemakers
After obtaining a Msc in Aerospace Engineering in 2014, Wijnand has developed himself as a technical consultant involved in a wide range of structural mechanical and fluid dynamical problems at Dynaflow Research Group. Wijnand is a problem solving engineer who is continuously developing himself. I am grateful to be given the chance to contribute to this project. I believe the development of the MSR can contribute to solutions with direct positive environmental impact for a better environment and society.
Thorben Besseling
If I had to describe myself briefly I would say that I’m a very curious person and eager to learn and analyze everything around me. In my free time I like to be always out and about, most preferably going to festivals with close friends or emptying my mind during a long bouldering session at the gym. In that sense, Thorizon strongly appeals to me since there are always new things we need to learn to tackle all of our challenges. Additionally, does the idea of contributing to a new sustainable energy technology and a project that has never been done before fascinate me.
‘If it hasn’t been thought-out, then why do it?’
Titus Tielens
Titus has an MSc in Physics from TU Delft and an MBA from Insead in France. He started his career at McKinsey & Company, and has since then held various strategy and business development position at TNO, Avery Dennison and Port of Amsterdam. In the seven years prior to Thorizon, he has worked at NRG|PALLAS where he was responsible for the scoping, strategy, and business case of the new PALLAS research reactor, focused on nuclear medicine and nuclear energy research. Titus joined Thorizon in June 2023 and is in charge of developing Thorizon’s strategy, partners and business in the main nuclear country in Europe: France.
‘I believe in Thorizon as the main technology to turn long-lived nuclear waste into a versatile, low-cost source of sustainable energy in the future.’
Bram Bruinsma
Before joining Thorizon Bram has been self-employed for many years as a project manager of complex technical projects with larger companies and developing and building special machinery for SME companies. He has lead some challenging projects in Molybdenium-99 production for NRG. Bram graduated in Mechanical Engineering in 1992 in Delft. Within Thorizon his focus will be on the building and construction of modules, prototypes and reactor.
‘ How fabulous is it to undertake this endeavor with a team of brilliant enthusiastic engineers from al over the world. Bringing this to a succes will create the boost society needs in the transition to a carbon-free economy. Proud to be part of that !’
Melis Kilic
Melis completed a joint MSc programme in nuclear energy engineering between KTH Royal Institute of Technology (Sweden) and Paris-Saclay University (France). After conducting the internship at the CEA Paris-Saclay SERMA laboratory, she worked for two years as a nuclear engineer in a state-owned electricity generation company in Turkiye. She has a research interest in radiation protection, reactor modeling and Monte Carlo simulations. She joined Thorizon as a junior core physics engineer to dive into an exciting journey with Molten Salt reactors. She is very happy to encourage women to take a stronger role in nuclear science.
“The potential of molten salt reactors tends to be underestimated by public and nuclear actors. Hence, the main drivers of Thorizon and its vision attracted me the most. I am thrilled to work in Thorizon’s design to support cleaner energy production for a sustainable future.”
Thorizon is hiring
We are looking for people with integrity who are passionate about (nuclear) innovation, are motivated by complex challenges and teamwork, and want to make a positive impact.
We are interested in technical talent in the fields of:
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Systems engineering
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Safety & licensing
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Procurement and supply chain
Interested in working at Thorizon? Email us at info@thorizon.com.
